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Friday, October 31, 2014

Just a quick notice that all content related to MediaPeruana Designs, including the blog, has moved to www.mediaperuana.com! I've managed to make the web version of the Learner's Per-knit blog redirect automatically, but the mobile version is not redirecting. So this post is primarily for readers viewing the site from their smartphones and other mobile devices: get thee to mediaperuana.com!

Friday, October 24, 2014

Did you see Volteado and the KAL on the Knitty blog this morning? I greatly appreciate the mention, and the promotion of the KAL, which is off and running. In fact, one intrepid knitter already finished a pair of socks!

I'm nowhere near finishing, but given that I'm wrangling 2 small people all day long, I don't think I'm doing too badly:

I had forgotten how quickly these socks knit up once you get the rhythm, and I absolutely adore the colors I chose. Inspired by one of the KAL-ers, I think I'm going to reverse the colors on the 2nd sock, just for fun.

The KAL runs through November 30, and everyone who finishes a pair of socks will be entered in a prize draw to win some YARN, so come join us!

Interestingly enough, in honor of Socktober all of my socks suddenly decided to fall apart. I recently found myself wearing a completely mismatched pair out of desperation, and decided enough was enough. So, because I have NO sock yarn in my stash whatsoever, I did a wee bit of shopping:

Some fun yarns from Knitterly Things (self-striping!) and Western Sky Knits. Now I'm fully stocked to knit up some plain vanilla socks that I can work on when my brain is just too tired for Volteado's stranding (which is most of the time, these days), or on the rare occasions that I find myself a passenger in a car and don't want to wrangle 2 balls of yarn.

Saturday, October 11, 2014

Recently the nice people at Stitchcraft Marketing gave me the opportunity to try out a few different kinds of Knitter's Pride knitting needles. I've been happy with my current interchangeable sets, but it's always fun to try something new. I also believe in the importance of working with the best tools available--and you can't find the best tools if you don't try new ones occasionally!

Knitter's Pride has a wide variety of needle-types--straight, double-pointed, circular and interchangeable, in several different materials, so there's really something for everyone. I received a sampler set with 3 different interchangeable tips, as well as 2 different kinds of fixed circular needles.

I first tore into the Karbonz fixed circular, and this one was definitely my favorite. They're made with carbon fiber, with nickel-plated tips. First--and a big plus for me--the size is printed right on the needle. This is true of all the needles I was given to try. I have eleventy needle gauges, but can never find one when I need it; having the size printed on the needle is much more convenient.

The carbon is lightweight and smooth--the stitches glide easily, even with superwash yarn, which I often find a little "sticky" on nickel-plated needles. The points are sharp, the cables are flexible (good for magic loop!) but sturdy, and the joins are smooth. The carbon truly does make for a much lighter needle, which can improve your knitting experience if you're working on a heavy project like a sweater--anything that reduces the weight is an improvement. You can find them in sizes 0-11, in 16 (only up to size 10), 24, 32 and 40" lengths.

I also got to try the interchangeable Karbonz tips--same needle, but as an interchangeable tip, available in sizes 2.5-11 and with 24, 32 and 40" cable options. The difficulty in evaluating interchangeable needles is that you really need to work with them a while to see how the joins hold up--do they loosen over time, get stuck, stop lining up correctly? It can take a few months for these kinds of issues to pop up, so I'll be reevaluating as I work with them, but assuming they do perform well, I'm considering purchasing a set. There are actually 3 different sets of the Karbonz interchangeable needles available: Starter, Midi and Deluxe. Deluxe, I'm sure you can guess, has all available sizes, while Starter and Midi have different subsets, so if you aren't ready to invest in the full set, you can buy a smaller set with the sizes you use most often. Since I'm a tight knitter, a 2.5 is often small enough for me to use for socks, so that's a great bonus for me: an interchangeable needle set that includes sock-sized tips.

Next I tried the Nova Cubics. I was quite curious about these needles--they're square! The tips still taper to a rounded point, but the body of the needle is squared off. According to the company, the "Unique ergonomic shape provides excellent grip and uniform stitch definition to the knit fabric." Sounds pretty good! They felt as natural to hold as regular needles, and my knitting did look nice and even. I don't--knock on wood--have any knitting-related wrist problems, but some knitters with wrist issues, arthritis, etc., who've used these needles found that they were able to knit for longer periods of time--fantastic!

I did find, however, that they made my knitting even tighter--whether because I was holding the needles differently or for some other reason related to the shape. As I am already a tight knitter, this isn't a result I'm looking for, but if you're a loose knitter, maybe they can help you tighten up! I plan to keep using them to see if that issue resolves itself as my hands get used to the unique shape. The Nova Cubics circular needles are available in sizes 1.5-11, in 16, 24, 32, 40 and 47" lengths. The interchangeable tips come in sizes 6-11, with 24, 32 and 40" cable options.

My last test drive was of the Bamboo interchangeable needle tips (shown here with Ollie's Christmas stocking on them!). I don't use wooden needles very often because, again, I think they tighten up my already tight knitting, but I do find them useful to have on hand for very slippery yarn. These are very lightweight, with a smooth finish, and even with the "sticky" Wool of the Andes yarn I'm currently using, the stitches are gliding over the needles quite easily.

The Bamboo tips come in sizes 2.5-15, and fit with the same interchangeable cables as the other tips, available in 24, 32 and 40" lengths. I did not try the fixed circular needles, but they are available in sizes 0-15, in the usual 16 (up to size 11 only), 24, 32 and 40" lengths.

Overall, I enjoyed working with these needles--I like that the sizes are labeled, I found the joins to be smooth and the cables flexible yet sturdy across the board, and the tips are sharp but not dangerous. All the needles come in a broad range of sizes with standard cable lengths, and the variety of materials and types of needles should meet most knitters' needs.

The only con I found for these needles as a whole is that the cables are black--this can make the stitches hard to see if you're using dark yarn, knitting in dim light, and/or if your eyesight isn't what it used to be. It's not enough to dissuade me from using or buying them, but it's something I would change, given the chance.

The Karbonz get my vote for the best of the bunch, but I encourage you to get your hands on any of the Knitter's Pride needles and give them a test drive!

This is the first sweater I've knit from The Rhinebeck Sweater, though I ultimately expect to knit almost all of them. I actually bought the book for Pumpkin Ale, which is still my dream sweater, but it doesn't fit into Year of the Pullover, so it will wait until next year.

I finished most of this sweater in July, but wasn't happy with the collar, so I ripped it out and redid it.
I'm still not happy. The instructions for the short rows are a bit vague, and I'm not sure I've done it correctly. The edge seems tight. The seam at the base of the collar looks rather messy too, but I made a good faith effort to do it neatly, and don't see any way to improve it.

I originally purchased 5 skeins of the main color, and as I got close to the end, panicked and ordered a sixth. When I started the collar, instead of using the rest of the fifth skein, I started right away with the sixth so I wouldn't potentially run out in the middle. So whether I actually needed a sixth skein is unknown, but I was happy to have it.

This sweater was my first adventure in steeking, which you can read about here. I'm happy to report no unraveling or other steek-related issues!

Overall, I'm happy with the sweater, but still need to lose some baby weight before I can actually wear it.

So, where does that leave me for Year of the Pullover? I'm still working to finish up my I Heart Aran, and have started Artichoke French, another great sweater from The Rhinebeck Sweater. Can I squeeze 2 more pullovers into 2014? Wish me luck!

Tuesday, September 30, 2014

A quick reminder that our Volteado KAL starts tomorrow, October 1! In honor of Socktober we're getting together and knitting the Volteado socks, available for FREE in Knitty's Deep Fall issue. Grab 2 skeins of sock yarn and come join us! There are prizes! Yarn ones!

Also, today is the LAST day to get my Pumpkin Butter sock pattern for just $3.50! The price goes up to $5 tomorrow, so don't miss out.